Fallen Joy come back after a recorded silence of 8 years, hence its title I suppose, with a substantial second album of an intro followed by 13 songs. This melodic death metal band has been in existence since 2008.
The orchestral bombast of the intro sets the tone before the real business begins. A Scandinavian style melodic riff – Fallen Joy are from France, by the way – fires up and we breeze through “Hold Your Hope” and “Keys of Eternity”. It’s like listening to Mors Principium Est – plenty of energy, melodic heaviness, rasping vocals and flamboyant guitar work. The band’s mobility is our mobility and it’s evident that Fallen Joy know how to play tightly, with flair and above all how to bring life to their songs. The format remains the same with “Nightmare Remains”, a song more reminiscent of Omnium Gatherum. The guitar solo blends in nicely. Fluidity is another strength. Like a racehorse galloping across a field, so do Fallen Joy’s songs. Happy as the music is on the surface, there’s a death metal edge.
The lyrics of “Blind Faith” reflect the defiance which lies in the music. I didn’t need to look at the lyrics of “Stronger than Ever” to work this out. The song rattles on in its rapid, melodic way. By contrast “Beast Unleashed” doesn’t seem to have a beast in it, or at least not to me anyway, and competent and pleasant as it is, I wondered if Fallen Joy might have pared this album down and mixed up the style a bit more. The more I listened, the less I found identity in the individual songs, which could have been about anything, but as an overall listening experience the infectious fiery melodies are there, as are the sharp instrumental passages. “Dying in Harmony” has a promising build-up and has epic pretensions but ultimately gallops on in the familiar pattern. I’m struggling to pick out a stand-out song. I had hoped that the final song “Des Cendres au Phénix” might bring Fallen Joy out of their creative shell, seeing as it was longer, but epically inclined as it was, this didn’t really happen.
I’d be lying if I said I’d never heard anything like this before, but that doesn’t detract from my enjoyment or appreciation of this melodic metal romp. It’s good value, particularly if this is your preferred genre. My own opinion is that I’m glad that Fallen Joy didn’t go down routes like having power ballads and such, and commend them for sticking to the formula they do well and its energy, but I do feel that “The Reborn” would have had more impact it was shorter.
(7/10 Andrew Doherty)
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